Ralph
Ralph is the main protagonist in William Golding's Lord of the Flies. He was among the survivors of a plane crash that landed onto an unknown island somewhere in the Pacific. He was chosen as leader of the group of boys and he begins coming up with different rules and guidelines, and most importantly, trying to create his own civilized society. But it all goes badly as Ralph fails to do so and is about to be consumed by savagery. Description Aside from being the main character, Ralph is an important protagonist, mainly because he represents civilized and socialized leadership. When voted as chief, he is very open and sociable with the group and is well-spoken during their meetings. He also takes things with extra precaution during the chaos on the island, even though he was accused by Jack of being a coward. Even during his time on the island, he strives to make the place feel a lot like home, like his familiar life before the airplane collision. He longed it to be a more comfortable and happy place, and hopes it can be civilized just like before. Ralph is reputed to be the son of an officer in the Navy, and hopes he will come for him and the others, although it's obvious that his father's fate is either unknown or deceased, due to the mysterious nuclear war going on. As such, it is the only known background detail about Ralph, since he is now on his own without any adults to counsel or guide him, and he must do it all for himself. Even so, Ralph himself, like the other boys, are innocent in the beginning and he believes that living on the island without adults would be the ultimate paradise. But his paradise would soon be lost as Ralph's power as chief begins to go downhill as all of his allies became empowered by savagery and The Lord of the Flies and he goes from being an socialized leader to a unfortunate victim who is the last boy not being among the savages, and all those who he once saw as his friends and troops all begin to turn on him and plotting to either make him one of their own or kill him for the power of their evil. Storyline Arrival on the Island Ralph was a schoolboy living in Great Britain either during the 1950's (at the time of the novel's publication), or in a unpredictable apocalyptic future. Not too long afterwards, a nuclear war breaks out and an atomic bomb exploded in England. Ralph, alongside all the other male students presumably in his school are evacuated on an airplane. But sometime during the flight, the plane got shot down and plummeted down onto the island in the Pacific Ocean. Ralph may have gotten out of the wreckage and made his way through the jungle and out towards the lagoon, where the novel first begins. He is soon joined by a fat, asthmatic boy named Piggy. They discuss about what had happened, from seeing their plane go up into flames before crashing and wondering if the other boys with them had survived. Ralph introduces himself to Piggy, but didn't bother to ask the other boy's name and walks away. The boy tries to catch up with him as Ralph arrives onto the beach. Ralph is told they should have a meeting to see who is still alive. Upon finding out that the fat boy's nickname is Piggy, Ralph makes fun of him by laughing, jumping around and saying his name repeatedly, while Piggy tells him to keep his nickname a secret. They arrive at the beach and Ralph swims in the lagoon. He says that his father is in the Navy and that he will eventually discover where they are and come to rescue them, but Piggy assures him that no one knows where they are. Ralph gets out of the water and finds a shiny conch shell. Piggy shows him how to use it and Ralph blows into it like a loud trumpet. At that moment, all the boy survivors come out of the jungle and out onto the beach, among them is Jack and his choirboys. Ralph humiliates Piggy by telling everyone of his nickname, which causes the boys to laugh out loud. Afterwards, he suggests they choose a leader of the group and to make the decisions for being rescued. The boys make a vote and Ralph wins, while Jack was disappointed. Ralph was chosen because of his charming appearance and that he called them with the conch shell. He feels sympathetic for Jack and he assigns him to be leader of the choirboys, who will be the hunters. Ralph suggests he and some of the other boys go on an expedition to find out where they are and if they are alone. He chooses Jack and a choirboy named Simon, but ignores Piggy's pleas for him to come, too. The three boys explore the island, even stopping to push a boulder off a cliff. They climb up to the top of a tall hill that is later called a mountain and saw a view of the Pacific Ocean. Ralph sees that they are on an island and that he feels like he and the boys have their own land. They make their way back to the beach, and Jack spots a pig on the way. He attempts to kill it but backed out, and would do it next time. Personalities/Appearance Relationships Category:Protagonists Category:Boys Category:20th-century characters Category:Characters